Pioneering energy technology heads overseas

More power to the consumer -- that's likely to be a key theme of the report by the Senate Select Committee on Electricity Prices, which will be released later today.

As well as giving more teeth and resources to the Australian Energy Regulator, the report will recommend greater scrutiny of infrastructure spending and further reform of Australia's $40 billion National Energy Market.

But the changes will come too late to save pioneering energy technology developed by an Australian company, Ceramic Fuel Cells, from moving offshore. It's an echo of the solar PV and solar thermal story, when Australia lost early developers of these alternative energy technologies to overseas.